An Immortal Descent Read Online Free Page A

“Selah...”
    Deri’s face wavered, the lines blurring before the image swirled away in an indistinguishable fog. I let it go, having derived all I needed from Anna’s memories. When the physical brain snapped back into view, I bathed the dark patch with Brigid’s fire, the same way I would have treated any case of frost nip. The tissue thawed under the stream of warmth until it gleamed a healthy gray. I turned my attention to the gangly lines of the wandering nerve, smoothing the disruption from the affected fibers. Satisfied, I opened my eyes and waited.
    Anna stirred. With a hand still on my shoulder, James leaned forward to watch her. Drawing in a soft breath, her eyes fluttered open. She blinked several times as the sleepy daze turned to panic in her face.
    Her eyes darted from me to James. “Who are you?”
    “Don’t be frightened,” I said.
    She took in the stables next. “Why am I here?” Digging her elbows into the dirt, she attempted to back away.
    James released my shoulder, but not until he tried to move did I realize that I had his calf in a death grip.
When did that happen?
    I yanked my hand away, and he knelt down next to the girl. “Don’t be alarmed. You fainted is all, right after you came into the barn.”
    The girl stared at him, openmouthed with shock. “Yer...yer...” The words stopped as she scrambled to sit up.
    “Mr. Roth,” he finished for her. “Now, Anna, I need you to answer something very important. A young girl named Deri came to your father’s inn sometime before sunrise this morning.”
    My eyes flew to James. “How did—”
    He held up a hand, cutting me off. “Anna, did this Deri tell you to kill Miss Kilbrid?”
    Confusion clouded the girl’s face. “Don’t know what ye mean, sir.”
    “Just before you fainted, you attacked Miss Kilbrid with a butcher knife.” James pointed at me. “Look at her, Anna. There’s blood on her nose where you pricked the skin.”
    The girl did as instructed. Fear leapt in her gaze at the sight of the wound. “No, sir. I... I didn’t try to kill anyone.”
    James blew out a hard breath. “How can you not remember?” He picked up the knife, held it blade down for her inspection. “Is this familiar?”
    She looked at the blade, her face troubled. “That knife came from the kitchen, sir. But I don’t know how it got here.” Tears welled in her eyes.
    “Well, it didn’t sprout legs and walk.”
    The tears spilled over as a sob broke in her throat. “I swear to ye, sir. I don’t know a thing about that knife.”
    I put a hand on her arm. “It’s all right, Anna. I believe you.”
    Relief washed over her face. “Thank ye, miss. On my mother’s grave, I never tried to kill ye.”
    “I know you didn’t.”
    James gave me an incredulous look. “How can you say that?”
    “No more, Mr. Roth,” I said firmly.
    His jaw tensed. Standing, he stepped away and thrust his hands on his hips.
    I turned my attention back to Anna, who was now watching me with clear astonishment. My hand remained on her arm. Meeting her eyes, I allowed the smallest trickle of warmth to leave my palm. “You received a terrible fright when you came into the stable today. A rat ran right across your path and you fainted.” More power flowed into her, along with a stream of my thoughts. Or at least, I hoped they did. My great-grandmother had done this trick to me on several occasions, planting ideas in my head as easily as a farmer dropped seeds in the earth.
    Anna stared at me, clearly bewildered. “I don’t remember no rat, miss.”
    Blast.
So maybe I needed more practice.
    “It was a very large rat,” James said from behind me. “Bigger than anything I’ve ever seen before. Perhaps you should go inside and lie down.”
    “But the knife, sir.”
    James didn’t even pause. “The light is poor in here, Anna. I must have been mistaken. Now return to the inn, and say nothing about what happened.”
    Anna scrambled to her feet, breaking the link